International law firm Womble Bond Dickinson has advised on a £28.5m investment from Homes England which will see land for more than 800 homes in Barrow-in-Furness prepared for use.
The firm has supported the national housing agency on the grant delivery and financing of a deal which will see Westmorland and Furness Council provided with funding to clean up, service, and facilitate land for more than 800 units of housing on previous industrial land in the town.
The land, previously part of the marina area within the town, forms part of the Government’s Levelling Up agenda as a Northern Powerhouse location, with funding provided as part of Homes England’s Brownfield, Infrastructure, and Land Fund.
A Womble Bond Dickinson team involving legal directors Mark Casey and Dean Murray and managing associate Christopher Stephens advised Homes England on the deal, with Mark providing advice on the preparation and negotiation of grant funding delivery, Christopher advising on property finance matters, and Dean supporting on subsidy.
Christopher said: “This deal is a landmark moment in the push for new housing within Barrow and this commitment from Homes England will provide a catalyst for the creation of a vibrant and effective property market, with Barrow waterfront identified as the best opportunity to deliver the scale of new housing the town urgently needs.”
The need for new housing in Barrow has been accelerated by BAE Systems’ recruitment needs following the Government’s signing of the £3.95bn AUKUS deal to produce the next generation of nuclear submarines, which will require adding 5,000 workers to its existing workforce of 12,000.
This funding will allow the council to undertake mass remediation of the site including surfacing, road access works, and the provision of a nature conservation site for the planned new Marina Village development which marks a critical investment into the regeneration of the town.
Barrow is home to the Royal Navy’s astute A-Class submarines, and will also be the site of construction for the country’s Dreadnought submarines, which are designed to carry Trident nuclear missiles.
The funding from Homes England will help facilitate Westmorland and Furness Council’s master-plan for the site, with the council already securing planning consent for remediation works and preparing the next phase of the site works to take the site to the housing development market.
The deal is the latest in a long line of projects Womble Bond Dickinson have supported Homes England with, following prior transactions involved as part of the Housing Infrastructure Fund, which was the predecessor to the BIL Fund.
Homes England is the country’s nationally focused housing and regeneration agency and focuses on the provision of affordable, quality homes in well designed places. The founding principle of the agency is to accelerate the pace of housebuilding and regeneration across the country.
